How to conduct your own house viewing

When you’re working with an online estate agent, they will usually book in your house viewings for you, but then it will be up to you to conduct your own house viewings for interested parties. The aim of a house viewing is to showcase your home in the best possible way to potential buyers. When a house viewing goes well, and a potential buyer remains interested in the property, the buyer may then enquire further, which could lead to a sale. It’s not strange for interested buyers to want to see the property more than once. In fact, a good rule of thumb for a lot of buyers is to view the property once during the day, and again during the evening. This gives them a good guess at what living in the area would be like, and what it would be like to live in your property during various hours of the day.

When you’re conducting your own house viewing, you should be ready to meet the potential buyers at your front door anywhere up to 15 minutes before their viewing slot. A lot of people tend to arrive early to appointments, as it’s considered good manners, so bear this in mind when you’re expecting company. Ensure that your garden and driveway are presentable, as this is a vital point in a viewer’s visit. They look to the front of the house for potential, and it’s in the walk up to the property that their excitement can grow.

Once you’ve welcomed your guests into your home and greeted each other, offer to show them around. Start with the living room, the dinning room if you have one, and then move upstairs. Remember to show them each room, allow them a few minutes to look around while pointing out any new features or answering any questions they have. Then, move outside to the backyard, and any additional features your property might have.When you’re showing your guests around, it’s important that you don’t crowd them in any way. Allow them to inspect the room as they’d like and stay well out of the way while they form their own opinions about each room. Conversation will be polite and will mainly focus on various elements of each room, and questions about the property.

Once the initial viewing has finished, offer the guests a chance to go back inside and look around by themselves. It can be awkward to size up a property with strangers standing over you, and even though it’s your home, you have welcomed them into it as the new potential owners. After that, feel free to edge your guests towards the door, politely. Most viewings typically last between 30 and 60 minutes, unless you have a rather large property.Before you begin a viewing, ensure that your home is tidy and looks as spacious as possible. Personal knick-knacks can be packed away to create the illusion of more space. Offer your guests a drink before you start the viewing.